5 Ways Shoppers Use Videos to Make Purchase Decisions

From unboxing and haul videos to product demos and tutorials, the internet is filled with all kinds of videos that inform, entertain and even push consumers to purchase specific products or stay committed to a certain brand.

Video has taken center stage over the years, surpassing mediums such as a well-optimized landing page or engaging social media ads. If you’re thinking of ways on how to influence your potential customers to interact with your brand or purchase your product, video is the way to go. 

Read on below to find out the ways video influences consumers while they embark on their purchasing journey and how you can take advantage of this medium to reach and engage with your audience. 

1. Compare One Brand or Product From Another 

In a survey conducted by Google, more than 50% of respondents say that product videos posted online help them decide what particular brand to purchase. Research is a huge part of your audience’s purchasing journey. They use the videos available to them as tools to find out the pros and cons or the benefits and disadvantages of a certain product or brand.

People can’t help but compare. Consumers will turn to what they watch online to determine whether they should choose you or your competition. Keep this in mind when creating your video strategy. Create short-form product comparisons and ensure that you include what makes your product stand out from the rest. 

2. Get Informed and Feel More Confident About Their Decision 

As consumers continue to be more aware of what they purchase, they have this hunger to expand their knowledge about the products they are looking into. For more technical information that can help solve complicated issues such as in the fields of finance or mechanical repairs, video tutorials can be an invaluable resource that will help your audience feel a little more confident about their purchase decisions.

Informative or instructional guide videos can become their reference when shopping for particular items. Quick how-tos, on the other hand, can help clear up any confusion they might have towards a complex product or subject. 

3. Make In-Store Decisions 

What’s interesting about the behaviors of consumers when using video is that they use it even outside the comforts of their home. In the same survey from Google, 55% of shoppers use video as some sort of virtual shopping list. Shoppers are essentially redefining what a shopping list can be, even going so far as to forgo handwritten notes or digital lists and opting straight for video. 

Consumers will rewatch videos that have given them a jolt of inspiration as they stand in the aisles of supermarkets, craft stores and hardware stores. Think recipe tutorials, DIY ideas, renovation hacks and maybe even product reviews from their favorite personalities or influencers. 

For more and more people, videos have replaced the traditional mediums we used to gather information and inspiration from such as cookbooks and in-person craft workshops. When they go to a store, they’ll simply pull up these videos on their phone, check if they’re missing an ingredient or item and immediately proceed to get what they need. 

4. Act As a Tiebreaker 

Speaking of people using videos in-store, they also bring out their phones whenever they need a tiebreaker. With this medium, they can get a clearer understanding of the product that best suits their needs in a smaller timeframe than reading a bunch of reviews or articles online. 

To make sound buying decisions that they’re confident in, consumers would even hit up platforms such as YouTube or even TikTok for recommendations from various sources such as trusted influencers to highly experienced professionals. People trust these user generated videos or UGCs as they think they are more trustworthy compared to in-house content. 

5. Build Engagement Through Informative, Honest and  Authentic Content 

In this very digital world we are in right now, the internet is saturated with all kinds of content, including video. It will only continue to expand just as it did from what it was during its inception. Even today, there are concerns over the authenticity of certain product endorsement videos and whether they are being genuine and honest or simply endorsing the product for pay. 

What’s great about video is that it’s a fantastic medium for building that trust between your brand and your audience. From giving your audience a behind-the-scenes look at your process to creating authentic customer testimonial videos, these types of videos are relevant as they resonate with them. And when they’ve connected with you, you’ll then be able to build strong relationships that will last longer than you might have even expected. 

What All Of This Means To Businesses Like Yours 

While it’s not shocking to know that videos have an increasing effect on the shopping decisions of online shoppers, what’s surprising is that they are actively referencing these videos within their shopping process, especially in-store. 

The best course of action for brands and businesses is to come up with ways and strategies on how you can show up to meet their needs during these right-in-the-moment shopping decisions.

You can look into creating more in-depth content that either answers their burning questions or guides them as they tread their path to an informed purchase decision. 

Or, with Vyrill, you can discover positive reviews and product videos your customers have already posted, license them on our platform, and feature them on your product pages and socials.  Learn more about Vyrill here.

By Guest Writer

Sophia Young